Conspicuous by their lower rankings were such high tech hubs as Silicon Valley and Boston being beaten out by the likes of Baltimore, Columbus, Raleigh and Salt Lake City.

Forbes used the latest employment data for high-tech businesses collected by the economic modeling firm EMSI to compile the list. It determined that San Diego job growth in high tech measured 0.5 percent between 2001 and 2011 and 2.6 percent between 2006 and 2011.

This week 's San Diego unemployment rate report shows the region is gaining steam on the job front, with 5,200 jobs added in the last month and the unemployment rate dropping from a revised 9.8 percent in September to 9.7 percent in October.

By comparison, the California unemployment rate was 11.7 percent in October, down from 11.9 percent in September.

Seattle took the top spot in the Forbes survey thanks to companies such as Microsoft, Amazon and Boeing, and job growth of 14.4 percent between 2001-2011, while the Silicon Valley region came in at only No. 17 and San Francisco placed 24th.